Latch for hoods of automobiles



FI MATHEWS.

LATCH FOB HOODS 0F AUTOMOBILES. APPLICATION FILED APR. 9, 1921.

1,396,704h PatentedNov.8,192`1.

Immun UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

FREQD MATHEWS, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS.,

LATCH Fon Hoops oF AU'ToMoBILEs.

Application led April 9,

To all whom, t may concern.'

Be it known that I, FRED MATHEWS, a c1t1- .zen of the United States,residing at Chicago,

in the county of Cook and State of Illinois, have invented certain newand useful Improvements in Latches for Hoods of Automobiles, of whichthe following is a full, clear, and exact description.

My invention relates to means for securing a movable memberto astationary member and particularly to a latch forv fastening the hangedsections of the hood of an automobile to the body of the same.

The object of my invention in so far as it relates to automobiles is toprovide a simple and comparatively inexpensiveV keeper element for thesections of the hood of the same, which the hook of the contractilelatch, now commonl used to hold said sections down, and whlch can beapplied with equal facility to an old or a new car to prevent chatteringand rattlingr and automatically adapts itself to the mechanical defectsor differences in the construction of said latches, substantially ashereinafter fullydescribed and as illustrated in the drawings, 1n which:

Figure 1 shows a fragment of one of the hinged sections of an automobilehood and the platform of the body of the same which is designed insection and shows in side elevation, my invention applied thereto.

Fig. 2 is a transverse vertical sectlon of the same taken on dotted line2, 2, Fig. l.

Fig. 3 is a plan view thereof.

Fig. 4 is a vertical transverse section of the improved keeper, and aside view of the upper portion of the contractile hook disengagedtherefrom.

Referring to the drawings, 5, represents the lower edge portion of oneof the hinged sections ofthe hood ofan automobile, and 6 the plateau orplatform upon which the lower edge of said hood section 5 rests when itis closed.

The keeper constituting my improvement is adapted to be used inconjunction with any latch comprising a hooked member and a lower membertelescopically engaging the same whose lower end is secured to theplatform upon which the lower edge of said hood section 5 rests when itis closed. rlhe latch illustrated in the drawings and hereinafterdescribed and referred to in conjunction with my improvements is typicalSpecification of Letters Patent.

Patented Novu 8, 1921.

1921. serial No. 459,840.

of them all, and it does not involve any originality.

This latch comprises a shank 7 that is hingedbetween pivotal lugs 8,(the supporting plate 9 of which is suitably secured to the platform 6)in such manner that it can be swung toward or away from the hoodsection. The upper end of this shank enters and telescopically engagesthe tubular shaft 10 of the latch member 11, whose upper end has a hook12 projecting toward the hood and has a handle :or linger-grasp 13projecting diametrically outward therefrom, by means of which it ismanipulated to raise or lower the hook. When the hook is raised andmoved inward on the pivot of shank 7, its longitudinal movement isresisted by a spring (not shown) incased in the tubular shaft 10thereof, and the action of this.

spring is constantly exerted to contract the latch and pull the hooktoward the pivot of said latch.

The keeper embodying my improvements consists of a supportingplate 25,that is secured to the section of the hood by bolts and nuts 14, orotherwise, and has corresponding lugs 15, 15, projecting outwardlytherefrom. These lugs have elongated corresponding co-terminous parallelbearing slots, 16, 1G, in them that extend from near their outer upperends downward in an inclined dire@ tion toward the hood, and are adaptedto receive the trunnions, 17, of a tumbler 18.

This tumbler consists of an oblong metallic member whose sides (fromwhich the trunnions project) are parallel. The outer portion of saidtumbler is bifurcated and these bifurcations, 19, 19, are connected neartheir outer ends by a cross-bar 2() which is adapted to be engaged bythe hook of the latclngas will hereinafter be more fully eX- plained.

The inner end of the tumbler is, preferably, curved from its upper edgeto its lower edge and conforms to a quadrant of a circle, and is adaptedto frictionally engage the supportingplate.

In operation, the tumbler when the hood section is closed will assumebefore it is engaged by the latch, the position to a greater or lessdegree, shown in dotted lines in Fig. 4 of the drawings. lVhen. thelatch is vraised and moved toward the hood and the hook thereof is madeto engage the cross-bar 20 of the tumbler, said tumbler will move intothe position shown in Fig. l of the drawings,

and clamp against the supporting-plate and prevent vibration of thehood.

I do not desire it to be confined to the exact shape of the tumbler asit is evident it can be altered to coperate with any type of latch thatcan be used in conjunction therewith, or its design changed to suit thetaste of the manufacturer, without departing from the principle of itsconstruction.

What I claim as new is:

1. A keeper for a latch comprising parallel lugs a support forthe same,and a rocking member journaled in said lugs one end of which is adaptedto be engaged land moved by the said latch to cause its opposite end toengage the support of the lugs.

2. A keeper for a latch comprising parallel lugs, a support for the sameand a rocking member journaled in said lugs and bodily movable towardsaid support and adapted to be engaged by the said latch at one endl andmoved to bring its opposite end into frictiona'l engagement with saidsupport.

3. A keeper for a latch comprising parallel lugs having correspondinginclined slots therein, a support for said lugs and a rocking memberjournaled in said slots and adapted to be engaged by said latch at oneend and moved on its axis to bring its opposite end into frictionalengagement with said support.

4. A keeper for a latch that is provided with a hooked end, comprisingparallel lugs having corresponding inclined slots therein, a support forsaid lugs, and a rocking member journaled in said slots having its outerend bifurcated and the bifurcations connected by a cross-bar whichlatter is adapted to be engaged by the hook of the latch to cause saidmember to move on its axis to bring its opposite end into frictional en,,rag ,re ment with said support.

5. A keeper for a latch comprising parallel lugs a support for the sameand a rocking member journaled in said lugs having an eye in one endwhich is adapted to be engaged by said latch to cause it to lock and itsopposite end to engage the support of said lugs.

6. The combination with a latch which is pivoted at one end to asuitable support and the opposite end of which is provided with a hook,of a hinged section of an automobile hood, and a keeper pivoted mediateits ends to said hood on an axis that is parallel to the outer surfaceof said hood, and the inner end of which when its outer end is engagedby the hooked end of said latch will engage said support.

7. The combination with a latch comprising two spring returnabletelescoping sections one of which is pivoted at one end to a suitablesupport and the opposite end of the other section of which is providedwith a hook, of a hinged section of an automobile hood, and a keeperpivoted mediate its ends to said hood on an axis that is parallel to theouter surface of said hood, and the inner end of which when its outerend is engaged by the hooked end of said latch will engage said support.

8.. The combination with a latch which is pivoted atone end to asuitable su port and the opposite end of which is provided with a hook,of a hinged section of an automobile hood, and a keeper pivoted mediateits ends on an axis that is parallel to the outer surface of said hood,which has an eye in its outer end portion, that is adapted to be engagedby the hooked end of said latch to cause its opposite end to engage saidsupport.

9. The combination with a latch comprising two spring returnabletelescoping sections one of which is pivoted at one end to a suitablesupport and the opposite end of the other section of which is providedwith a hook, of a hinged section of an automobile hood, and a keeperpivoted mediate its ends on an axis that is parallel to the outer surface of said hood, which has an eye in its outer end portion, that isadapted to be engaged by the hooked end of said latch to cause itsoppositeend to engage said sup- Jort. l 10. The combination with a latchwhich is pivoted at one end to a suitable sup ort and the opposite endof which is provided with a hook of a hinged section of an auto- -mobilehood, lugs projecting from the outer surface thereof havingr downwardlyand inwardly extending elongated openings therein, and rocking keeperhaving trunnions that are journaled in said elongated openings andhaving an eye in its outer end that is adapted to be engaged by thehooked end of said latch to cause its -opposite end to engage saidsupport.

, In testimony whereof, I have hereunto set my hand.

FRED MATHEWS. Witnesses:

FRANK D. THoMAsoN, VIOLET WARDELL.

